SS garage sink for homebrew

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MadZack

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I'm finally getting around to having plumbing installed in our garage (erm, my brewhaus...) so I can do my cleanup in there, instead of having to lug stuff into the kitchen...

Any recommendations? I don't want a cheap "home depot special" plastic laundry/utility sink, I'm looking for a stainless steel sink, preferably at least 24" on a side (preferably even more, like 30x24).

I could also use recommendations for a commercial-style faucet with sprayer (and plenty of clearance).

My head's getting full from trying to research this kind of stuff, and I figure y'all have likely been down this road, so hoping to pick some brains from folks who have done a similar install...

Thanks in advance!
 
Burkett Resturant Supply is local-ish to me and I bought a restaurant sink with a side drain board from them pretty reasonably. Reasonably enough that I've seriously considered buying one without the drain board on the side to replace our plastic laundry tub once we figure out our 5-year plan.

I definitely recommend against the plastic sink. Ours in the laundry room looks dirty all the time and the drain is tiny and slow. The restaurant sinks use a regular sink drain and could even accommodate a disposal should you desire.
 
Here's how I parse this question.

Below is my sink. After having used this for years in brewing, I can't imagine having a standard stainless sink where I'd have to bend over to work on stuff in it. Further, if it doesn't have a sideboard on which you can lay down kegs or kettles or whatnot to clean them out, for me it's a non-starter. You also can set stuff down to drain or dry.

Now, my sink is an old metal sink as was common in the 50s. Someone set it out for junk day and I grabbed it. I laid down a 4" concrete slab to raise it off the garage floor a bit, and the height is just perfect. No bending over, no back pain from leaning over a sink....

You can get stainless sinks with a sideboard--on the left, or the right, or both. I'm not sure if it's possible to get one with a shallow bowl, but you could put in a cabinet with a standard stainless sink bowl, one that is much shallower than the norm. And if you dropped one of those into a cabinet, you could add shelves and cupboard below for storage, make it as wide as necessary for a sideboard, whatever.

I have an RO filter mounted under the sink and I run a line into an aquatainer to store that water. I keep my star-san, PBW, and other stuff under there as well. If I were doing a new brew space, I'd probably install a cabinet w/ a shallow stainless sink, just to allow for all the storage space underneath it (plus the shallower bowl).

I'm also including a wide shot pic. I have a rolling sort of cabinet thing on the right which also allows me to set down stuff to drain or dry.

It's a little hard to see that the sink has a metal sideboard/drain board on the left side. I have a piece of rubber mat on it, plus I created a little extension out of a piece of plywood. The drawer under the sideboard is pulled out about 3" and I set the plywood extension on it (pic below) But the pic showing the keg illustrates part of why I love this setup and would recreate it in a new brew space.

BTW, I have a standard spray hose on this sink (had the plumber replace the standard faucets). I wouldn't want and don't miss the kind that comes down from above. Among other problems with such a hose is that you can't use it to spray out something laid on its side. :)

Anyway, something to consider. Good luck! There are few things as much fun as planning a brew area.

kegsink.jpg
brewspacesink.jpg



This wider angle shows how the plywood extension of the sideboard extends to the bench on which I set the BK and MT.

brewspacewideangle.jpg


EDITED TO ADD: Here's a better view of the sink. I would have put this on a long wall with more room if I hadn't added it to the garage 25 years ago before I ever dreamed of homebrewing; as it is, it works pretty well for me.

sink1.jpg
 
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Here’s what I posted on a similar thread. Short version, I have a huge stainless sink, exactly what Mongoose doesn’t want, and I love it.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/utility-sink-ideas.598068/#post-7825149

Nothing wrong with stainless, IMO, as long as it has a drainboard/sideboard, has cupboards and drawers underneath, and has a shallow bowl not requiring me to bend over to work on it.

To each his own. That's the beauty of all this, we all get to decide what makes us happy, and different circumstances (I've had two back operations) beget different solutions.

Cheers!
 
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